Tomb of the Sea Episode 14 Recap
> Tomb of the Sea Recap
Having dropped his pretense, Galu, after wounding Master Ma, ordered Lao Mai to round up the film crew and Wang Meng. Director Wang’s attempt to fight back was swiftly halted by Galu’s throwing knife. From a distance, Wu Xie and Li Cu observed the unfolding events. Wu Xie instructed Li Cu to stay put while he went to rescue them, but Li Cu, disregarding the warning, rushed forward.
Galu met him with a punch, knocking Li Cu to the ground and mocking his weakness. Wu Xie quickly followed, engaging Galu in a fierce fight. Despite Galu’s skill, Wu Xie gained the upper hand until Lao Mai intervened, holding a gun to Wu Xie’s head. Galu then returned to Li Cu, taunting him further about his perceived uselessness. Suddenly, Li Cu’s eyes turned pitch black, and he unleashed an immense, uncanny strength, effortlessly throwing Galu a considerable distance.
This burst of power quickly faded, his eyes returned to normal, and he along with Wu Xie and the others were subdued. Galu, no longer feigning simple-mindedness, relished in his successful deception, admitting how tiring it had been to maintain the act but how satisfying it was to see everyone fooled.
He revealed his ultimate goal was to reach GuTongJing and confessed to killing Marera, dismissing Surige as an incompetent pawn, not his mother, effectively confirming both were part of the Clan Wang. Su Nan, too, was revealed to be a member of the Clan Wang, having deliberately approached Wu Xie with ulterior motives. Galu, having noticed the Seven-Fingers Map on Li Cu’s back, decided to force Wu Xie to reveal the true route to GuTongJing.
He threatened to kill everyone, torturing three young women from the crew by cutting their tendons, not even sparing Lulu who had been kind to him. As he held Wang Meng captive, Wu Xie, unable to bear further harm to his friend, agreed to disclose the route. However, Galu abruptly changed his mind, deciding Wu Xie was too clever to be kept alive and aimed his gun at him, intending to kill him and rely solely on Li Cu's map.
Su Nan, however, intervened, pointing her own gun at Galu. She argued that Wu Xie’s life was essential as Li Cu’s map alone wouldn't suffice to navigate all the mechanisms within GuTongJing. Galu, accusing Su Nan of having feelings for Wu Xie, retaliated by shooting several of her men. Seizing a moment of opportunity, Su Nan kicked sand into Galu’s face, momentarily blinding him, and fired her gun.
Wu Xie quickly picked up a fallen gun and aimed it at Su Nan. A tense standoff ensued, with Wu Xie stating they only had two choices: either he shot her, or she shot him, as he had no time to waste. Su Nan proposed a third option: Wu Xie kills Li Cu, she kills Wang Meng, and they go to GuTongJing together.
Wu Xie sarcastically acknowledged it as a "good idea," subtly confirming his knowledge of her Clan Wang identity. As their conversation continued, Wang Meng, seizing the distraction, swiftly knocked out Su Nan from behind. As Wu Xie, Li Cu, and Wang Meng attempted to gather their supplies, Galu, surprisingly, stirred back to life and threw a knife, hitting Wu Xie’s backpack.
As the sand around them began to shift, Wu Xie urged Li Cu and Wang Meng to run towards the approaching sea. They quickly reached the water, and Wu Xie ordered them to jump in, despite Li Cu’s protestations about the sanity of the act. Galu continued his relentless pursuit. Swimming was arduous, and Li Cu, struggling, soon grew exhausted and began to sink, though Wu Xie pushed him to persevere.
They eventually awoke on a vast white sand beach, though Li Cu was nowhere to be found. Wu Xie immediately noticed the eerily windless environment. Investigating further, he and Wang Meng discovered a Soviet truck half-buried in the sand. Wu Xie deduced, based on the rust and the type of tires, that the vehicle had been there for over half a century and could not have driven across the sandy terrain, implying a hidden road beneath.
As they dug around the truck, they uncovered a mummified corpse dressed in a 1930s-40s European engineer's uniform, suggesting a major past project. Wang Meng found a still-working watch and a notebook on the body. Nearby, Wu Xie discovered a brick wall bearing the inscription "GuTongJing 056," confirming they had indeed found the true GuTongJing. However, he realized that while entry was achieved, escape was now the challenge, with the sea appearing to be their only potential exit.
The immediate priority, however, was finding Li Cu. Returning to the buried truck, Wu Xie and Wang Meng examined its interior. The driver was dead, and an open container sat beside him. Wu Xie theorized that the container’s contents were responsible for the driver's death, but that their toxicity had dissipated over the decades, as proven by their own lack of harm after prolonged exposure.
He also believed the driver hadn't locked himself in to die, but had been forcibly trapped by others. As they pulled the driver’s body from the vehicle, a string of grenades was inadvertently pulled out with it. Wu Xie reacted swiftly, kicking the grenades away just before they detonated. The explosion caused a significant shift in the sand, revealing several other identical trucks and more dried corpses, all arranged in a circular formation.
Amidst the chaos, Wang Meng spotted Li Cu near one of the newly uncovered vehicles. Li Cu, waking from his ordeal, initially believed he had arrived in heaven, only to find himself in the true GuTongJing, his back throbbing for a moment. The trio surveyed their surroundings. Wu Xie pondered the circular arrangement of the cars, initially suspecting a camp or a defense against an unprecedented sandstorm, given that all the previous inhabitants had perished.
He also considered a darker possibility: they might have been attempting to encircle the mobile desert sea itself, fearing its unpredictable movements. To survive, they decided to search the vehicles and the corpses for any remaining provisions. Afterward, honoring the dead, they buried them and erected a tombstone, which Li Cu named "Lost Souls' Regrets," dedicating it to those who had left home and could never return. Meanwhile, Zhang Rishan was also active.
He had arranged to meet Liang Wan that night. Having just treated an emergency patient, Liang Wan arrived late, soaked by the rain, and feeling unwell. Zhang Rishan offered her his coat and later, at her home, poured her hot water. It was then, as he checked her forehead for a fever, that he noticed a phoenix tattoo on her back, immediately realizing she was a member of the Clan Wang and not the simple, infatuated girl he had perceived.
Liang Wan, sensing her cover was blown, her demeanor abruptly shifted, and she promptly asked Zhang Rishan to leave. The following day, Zhang Rishan proactively addressed issues within the Nine Clans. Having discovered illegal dealings by Master Huo's subordinates, whose company, JinShangZhu, had a long-standing partnership with Zhang Rishan’s QiongQi Company, he sent Luo Que to intercept their cargo.
Later, in a confrontation with a representative from JinShangZhu, Zhang Rishan asserted his authority as president of the Nine Clans Association, reminding them of Uncle Buddha's decree against illicit activities. He directly challenged JinShangZhu's disdain for the Nine Clans' rules, issuing an ultimatum: they could formally withdraw from the Nine Clans, but they would then face the repercussions of losing the association's protections.
